I am currently tutoring algebra math in Howard Community College and what I notice from student is that they are depending too much on their calculator to solve basic arithmetic and forget the basics of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. For example, one of the students I tutor has difficulty subtracting 2 - 5 and has to rely on their calculator to tell them the answer, when I tell them not to use their calculators; they get frustrated and end up asking the instructor for help instead because the professor allows them to heavily use the calculator to solve problems. In my opinion, calculators should not be permitted in certain math courses especially in basic algebra courses. In an interview and study done on calculator usage Jennifer Bosley stated, “Among teachers of year 13 calculus, 91.8% sometimes use Graphing Calculators, while 75.4% regularly use them. Among teachers of year 13 statistics, 79.4% sometimes use Graphing Calculators, while 66.7% regularly use them… This is surprising since these courses contain a lot of graphical work on functions that would appear to lend itself to Graphic Calculator work” (Bosley). This irritates the fact that certain math courses require more calculator use than others because of the level of difficulty we are doing. Moreover, I graduated from Centennial High School and throughout my high school years I never used a calculator even at a difficult math course such as Calculus AB AP because my teachers did not allow us to. I think that my teachers have the same belief as I do that calculators tend to make us forget our basic arithmetic. And through this experience, I learned a lot about math. In Addition, coming from another country the Philippines, and learning a new language is difficult. My struggles in English classes are writing literature and what make it even more difficult is the short due dates. I depend tremendously on word processor to spell check, thesaurus use, and grammar check and it feels as though my English grammar does not improve. All these illustrates that technology has some influence on everyone especially me with the usage of word processor to get my essays done.
Bosley, Jennifer, et al. "Use of calculators in the mathematics classroom." Electronic Journal of Mathematics and Technology 2.2 (2008): 229+. Academic OneFile. Web. 9 Nov. 2011.
Wow you are so absolutely right in my eighth grade math class they don't show us how to create problems without calculators anymore I remember when my grandmother told me that whenever she would use a calculator her teachers used to smack her. Tests aren't learning anyway but why is it called a "test" if my class and I are told to use calculators on it
ReplyDelete